Compensating gear.



No. 649,899. Patented May 22, I900.

H. M. BRENENSTUL & A. M. CARPENTER.

CDMPENSATING GEAR.

(Application filed Dec. 20, 1899.

(No Model.)

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i Nrrn STATS FFICE.

PATEN ALVIN M. CARPENTER, OF

COM PENSATING GEAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 649. dated y 1900.

Application filed December 20,1899. $8Tifl1N0- 7 1 (N0 model-3 To (allwhom, it 71mg concern:

Be it known that we, HENRY M. BRENEN- STUL, residing at Wakeinan, in thecounty of Huron, and ALVIN M. CARPENTER, residing at Cleveland, in thecounty of Cuyahoga, State of Ohio, citizens of the United States, haveinvented a new and useful Compensating Gear, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to gearing in general, and more particularly tothat class known as compensating gearing, one object of the inventionbeing to provide a construction particnlarly adapted for use uponautomobiles and upon other vehicles that are self -propelled and inwhich the wheels may be so connected with the driving-shaft as toprevent slipping of the wheel when turning corners and consequent wearupon the parts, a further object being to avoid the necessity of forminga two-part axle, as is the common practice.

In the drawings forming a portion of this specification, and in whichsimilar numerals of reference designate like and corresponding parts inboth views, Figure 1 is a perspective View showing a wheel-hub equippedin accordance with the present invention and showing the roller-diskremoved to disclose the mechanism. Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinalsection of the rear portion of a hub and the adj acent shaft-bearin g,the shaft being shown in elevation. I 4

Referring now to the drawings, 5 represents the power-shaft of amotor-vehicle, to which the power is supplied from the motor to thewheels, and which shaft is mounted in rollerbearings 6, disposed in ajournal-box 7 upon the frame of the vehicle. Upon the powershaft 5 isloosely mounted a wheel at each end, and each of which wheels comprisesa hub 8, having inner and outer flanges 9 and 10, to which the spokes ofthe wheel are attached in the usual manner. At the inner end of the hub8 and beyond the flange 9 is a radial flange 11, which may be secured toor formed integral with the hub and which extends beyond the peripheryof the flange 9, this flange 11 having a flange 12 upon its rear faceextending parallel with the power-shaft 5. In the rear end of the hub 8is a recess 13,

concentric with the hub and extending to a point beneath the flange 9,and which recess receives a ring 14, which is secured to the shaft 5through the medium of a key 15, this ring extending rearwardly beyondthe rear end of the hub 8 and having a radial flange 16 upon thisrearwardly-extending portion. The flange 16 is flattened, as shown at 17and 18, at diametrically-opposite points, while the intermediateportions of the periphery of the flange are arc-shaped and are adaptedto fit snugly against the inner periphery of the flange 12. Upon theflattened faces 17 and 18 are secured wear-plates 19 and 20, for apurpose which will be presently described.

The rear end of the ring 14. is separated from the adjacent end of thejournal-box hanger 7 by an interspace, and in this inter space isdisposed a carrier-disk 21, rotatably mounted upon the end of thejournal-box and lying against the lower portion of the journal-boxhanger. At opposite points on the face of the carrier are disposedbearing-pins 22, which project into the interspaces between thebearing-plates 19 and 20 and the adjacent portions of the flange 12.Upon these pins are loosely mounted clutch-rollers 23 and 24, which liein the said interspaces and are adapted to wedge between the wearplatesand the flange 12 to rotate the wheel with the shaft.

A dust-ring 30 is secured upon the outer periphery of the flange 11 andextends in the direction of the hanger 7, the edge of the ring adjacentthe hanger having an inwardlydirected flange which closely encircles thecarrier 21 to prevent access of dust to the clutch-rollers and otherparts of the mechanism.

The operation of this construction is as follows: When running straightahead, both wheels are rotated with the shaft, due to the movement ofthe ring 14 with the shaft, this ring being clutched to the flange 12through the medium of the rollers 23 and 24. The friction of thecarrier-disk 21 upon the end of the journal-box is sufficient to retardthe movement of the carrier-disk under the influence of the shaft 5, sothat the rollers 23 and 24 will move to the position shown in Fig. 1when the vehicle is first started in one 2 e itists direction. It thenfor any reason the wheel should tend to turn faster than the shaft 5,the movement of the flange 12 with respect to the Wear-plates 19 and 20would tend to roll the rollers 23 and 24 from their wedging positionsshown in Fig. 1 to an extent sufficient to permit the flange 12, andtherewith the hub 8 and the Wheel, to move freely. It is of courseunderstood that the disk 21 tends to stand still upon the end of the box7 and is only rotated when the wear-plates 17 and 18 engage against therollers. If then the parts he in the positions shown in Fig. 1 that is,if the rollers be in the positions shown in said figure and the ring 14,with its flange 16, is rotated to the rightthen the engaging portions ofthe wear-plates will move from the clutching-rollers and their oppositeends will subsequently move against the rollers, so that the left-handend of plate 18 and the right-hand end of plate 17 will engage therollers. During this action the disk 21 does not move and the ring 12slides over the rollers, which at that time act as idlers. When therollers again engage, the direction of retation of ring or flange 12 isreversed, and should the ring or flange then run faster than portion 16in its new direction it will run freely over the rollers, for the reasonthat the carrier is never moved excepting under the influence of theengagement of the wearplates with the rollers. It will thus be seen thatin turning corners the inside wheel may rotate with the shaft, while theoutside wheel may rotate at a'greater speed, and that when the directionof movement of the Vehicle is changed the wheel which was the inside Iwheel may become the outside wheel and then rotate at a greater speedthan the shaft,while the wheel that was the outside wheel may become theinside wheel and rotate at the same speed with that of the shaft.

It will of course be understood that in practice the specific structureherein shown may be altered, and that any suitable materials andproportions may be employed for the different parts without departingfrom the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is-- 1. The combination with a jou rnal-box and a shaftjournaled therein, of a wheel comprising a hub mounted loosely upon theshaft, a flange carried by the hub and extending rearwardly thereof andconcentric with the shaft, a ring fixed to the shaft and lying withinthe inclosure of the flange, said ring having flattened portions atopposite points of its periphery resulting in segmental interspacesbetween the ring and flange, a carrier frictionally mounted upon thejournal-box and rotatable with respect thereto, and rollers carried bythe carrier and lying in the interspaces, said rollers being adapted towedge between the flange and the flattened portions of the ringalternately at opposite ends of the latter.

2. The combination with a journal-box and a shaft j ournaled therein, ofa wheel compris ing a hub mounted loosely upon the shaft, a flangecarried by the hub and extending rearwardly thereof, and concentric withthe shaft, a ring fixed to the shaft and lying within the inclosure ofthe flange, said ring having flattened portions at opposite points ofits periphery resulting in segmental interspaces between the ring andflange, wear-plates fixed to the flattened portions, a carrierfrictionally mounted upon the journal-box and rotatable with respectthereto, rollers carried by the carrier and lying in the interspaces,said rollers being adapted to Wedge between the flange and thewear-plates alternately at opposite ends of the latter, and a dust-ringfixed to the flange and inclosing the periphery of the carrier. 4

3. A clutch mechanism comprising a driving element having a clutch-face,a driven element having a clutch-face, a clutch-body disposed forengagement with the faces when their respective bodies .are moved ineither direction, and means for holding the clutching-body inoperativewhen the driven element rotates at a greater speed than the drivingelement.

4:. A clutch mechanism comprising a driving element having aclutch-face, a driven element having a clutch-face, a carrier andclutch-rollers rotatably mounted upon the carrier in operative relationto the clutchfaces, said carrier being mounted for rotation at arestricted speed under the influence of the driving element, to hold therollers inoperative when the driven element rotates at a HENRY M.BRENENSTUL. ALVIN M. CARPENTER.

WVitnesses:

DELLA DE HART, W. H. PEACE.

